Thanks to their 3-1 win yesterday over the Yankees, giving them the Subway Series title for 2008, the Mets officially ended the first half of their season 40-41 – and with enough drama to last a whole season, and then some.

From the buildup to Willie Randolph’s firing — and its aftermath; to the injuries to Pedro Martinez, Moises Alou and Ryan Church; to the varying levels of effectiveness from veterans Luis Castillo and Carlos Delgado; the Amazin’s have seemingly been in a constant state of disarray since the season began.

Despite all of that, the Mets sit two games out in the loss column, trailing the Phillies for first place in the NL East, and they begin an eight-game road trip in St. Louis tonight (7:05, SNY, WFAN).

“I thought they competed and I think that’s important in this kind of series,” Jerry Manuel told nj.com about his team’s effort against the Yankees. “You’ve got to compete, and I thought we did that.”

In a season full of ups-and-downs in every aspect of the team’s play, one preseason strength that could be rounding into form is the starting rotation.

The acquisition of Johan Santana in the offseason, combined with the return of 15-game winners Oliver Perez and John Maine and a healthy Pedro Martinez, was supposed to give the Mets an edge on the rest of the National League.

But that edge hasn’t consistently translated into wins on the field, evident in the Mets’ sub-.500 record.

But after Santana and Perez each pitched well against the Yankees over the past two games, the Mets will hope John Maine can continue that success on the hill tonight.

After allowing three runs in five innings against the Diamonbacks on June 10, and five runs in 6 1/3 innings against the Rangers on June 15, Maine has rebounded with two quality starts in a row. He has allowed two runs in each of his past two starts, going 6 2/3 innings in a win over Colorado on June 20 and six innings in a win Wednesday over Seattle.

Maine’s performance against the Rockies was particularly impressive. He was forced to abandon his slider because of a blister on his finger.

Mets RHP John Maine (8-5, 3.76): Maine is on pace to win another 15 games and finish the season with an ERA under 4.00, but he’s had trouble pitching late into games. He has pitched seven full innings once all season, when he went 8 1/3 May 7 against the Dodgers.

Cardinals RHP Kyle Lohse (9-2, 3.94): After winning six straight starts since May 24, Lohse finally had a no-decision in his prior start Wednesday, when he allowed five runs on 11 hits in four innings in the Cardinals’ 8-7 loss to the Tigers. Lohse’s prior loss came May 8 against the Rockies, when he allowed seven runs on eight hits in four innings.